I read this book for one of my classes at school. I really enjoyed reading the book, because the area I live in has floods at least once a year. After I read the book to my students, it really hit home to them. Most of them has gone through what the girl and her mother has gone through.

Book Review Rearwin: A story of Men, Planes, and Aircraft Manufacturing During the Great Depression By Bill Wright Reviewed by Eric Rearwin In his book, Bill Wright provides insight into the history of aviation in America at the time of its birth through World War II. He chronicles the life and times of Rae Rearwin who founded a small airplane business in Salina Kansas in 1928. Over the years, Rae and his sons would see the design and building of the Rearwin Junior, Ken-Royce, Cloudster, Speedster, Sporster, and Skyranger. The company would see hard times during the Great Depression, the sale of gliders and trainers during World War II, and the sale of the company in 1942. The book imparts the reader with unique historical perspective on early aviation and the attention to detail makes for a fascinating journey into the hearts and minds of the public who were seeing these new flying machines for the first time. Ken Rearwin, son of founder Rae Rearwin and a pioneer salesman, struggled to gain the public's acceptance of the new aircraft. In 1936, he remarked at the difficulty of selling airplanes to a certain potential customer who was "typical of too many Americans who, serene in ignorance, decry flying". Over 350 photos and illustrations make the book a treasure for collectors and a valuable resource about the men who built a legacy that still lives on today.

Anyone interested in population genetics and evolution should read this book. It is a great book on one of the most influential people in evolution.

William Adair Bernoudy, Architect will hold special significance for the residents of St. Louis as well as for any following the architectural legacy of Frank Lloyd Wright: it provides almost 300 color photos and almost thirty floor plans exploring the work of William Bernoudy, a leading advocate of Wright's style. An outstanding collection of examples.

Dr. Wright's book is a quiet revelation which led to an internal revolution for me. His careful definitions of abuse and what constitutes abuse are but the preludes to detailed and riveting stories of hurt and healing. As we watch the Roman Catholic churches wrestle with one form of abuse and the Israelis and Palestinians wrestle with another, such a definition is indispensable to our understanding of what faith and belief really mean. There could not be a timelier exploration of one of the central issues of our day -- finding spirituality that unites and heals instead of dividing and killing. Dr. Wright's book is a must-read!

Having experienced both childhood and clergy religious abuse, I rejoiced to discover Dr. Wright's book. It helped me understand the sources of my own pain and ways to overcome it. This work identifies many kinds of abuse in religious communities, and examines correctives to discourage, prevent and heal such abuse. Wright draws on 45 years of pastoral experience, the work of other authors, takes resources from psychology, current Biblical scholars and theologians. There are personal stories of both pain and healing from his own experience and that of others.
Dr. Wright describes several forms of abuse and uses Scriptural references to propose appropriate behaviors. In Chapter 5, "Religion and Abuse of Women," Wright cites an account of a mother trying to discuss the Image of God with her young children, and is astonished by her daughter's response. The daughter announced that she isn't like God because she is a girl, but her brother is like God because God is a boy. (p. 86ff) This erroneous position certainly learned in church, was carried historically in both Jewish and Christian practice, causing a patriarchal demeaning of women. Wright offers an interpretation of Genesis 1-3 which separates the creation of humankind, both male and female, in God's image from the post-fall prescriptive against Eve to be subwervient to her husband.
In the chapter "Religion and the Abuse of Clergy," one abuse is forcing the pastor to be untruthful about what he/she has learned in seminary. This is caused by denominational leadership and executives, and congregational reluctance to listen to new ideas. Wright does discuss the abuse of pastors caught between parties to conflict. In my experience and observation, the use of power in church conflict is more harmful and painful, including the "collateral damage" to family and friends, than any other form of clergy abuse.
Appropriate uses and misuses of power are dealt with in the chapter "Theologial Sources of Abuse." This chapter deals with the power of God, in Paul's phrase, as the power of weakness.
In the final chapters, Dr. Wright proposes a reinterpretation of the life, work, death and resurrection of Jesus as a compaassionate calling back of strayed persons, rather than the exaction of a price for disobedience of God. He denies the traditional explanation of the transmission of sin as genetic and inherited. This will certainly dismay some readers, but I found it reassuring and contributing to an understanding of God's sompassionate love and the love and compassion we can share with each other--a true cure for religious abuse!

This is an important book for leaders and members of every religious tradition.Keith Wright offers examples of abusive behavior which in the past have been tolerated or ignored, and he urges that the issue of abuse be recognized and challenged despite the possible costs of speaking up.
The treatment of clery by congregations and administrators has been called a "cruelty system." This is common knowledge among ministers and administrators, but few, like Keith Wright, have had the courage to name these behaviors "religious abuse." Wright reminds his readers that "everybody knows that the church has been guilty of much evil, but very few people within the church are willing to tell the truth."
Ministers and lay people have quietly left their congregations in response to the pain they have suffered in the name of religion. Wright covers a wide range of types of abuse in this thought-provoking book, including the abuse of workaholic preachers who burden people with more than they can handle, and the withholding of approval from a significant person in your life.
I believe that this book should be read widely in the church and especially by clergy, lay leadlers and seminarians. Its strength is that it is written by an ordained minister who loves the church and who continues to value the experience which a life lived connected to a religious tradition provides. Its challenge is to see and label abuse when it occurs and then to act to stop the abuse.
Wright concludes: "Our task is to recognize and discourage religious abuse where it occurs while doing our best to foster and nurture those aspects of religion which are life-giving and life-sustaining."

Over all a very good book. It not only describes the twin studies in Minnesota, but also explains how genes influence, not determine, our behaviour.

Unfortunatly I was disapointed by the conclusion. Here the author makes some of his own speculations that really ignore facts.

He tries to state that the trouble in the former Yugoslavia is more genetic than cultural because they have been living in peace for so long. We actually don't know how they well they were getting along in a totalitarian society, and 50 years isn't even enough for one lifetime.

He also tries to say that anti-abortion sentiment might be natural, ignoring the fact that we have had ways of getting rid of unwanted children since at least the start of written history.

If it wasn't for the conclusion I would give it a 5.

William Wright tackles the link between genes and behavior in plain language. He makes it clear that as human beings with consciousness and choice, genes do not dictate behavior, but contribute to it. He separates the politics of the fear regarding genetic research from what we know and how we know it and how we use new information. He also discusses how researchers might avoid some methodological hazards or the accusation of fudged data (document everything!).

He says, "Most scientists take the position that knowledge is neutral, value free; the use to which it is put might be good or bad, beneficial or hurtful to society in general. First, learn as much as we can, then let society decide how new information will be used. The opponents of behavioral genetics have consistently feared such a climate of unfettered inquiry." (p. 215)

Much of this book focuses on twin studies, but Wright also describes some of the research on hormone levels and their effects. He attempts to tease out the variables of nature and nurture on specific behaviors such as intelligence, depression, and a tendency toward violence.

My reading of this book sparked a frenzy of my reading other books on twins, homosexuality, and other research on the links between genes, environment, and behavior. I highly recommend this book.

~~Joan Mazza, author of Dream Back Your Life; Dreaming Your Real Self; Things That Tick Me Off; and Exploring Your Sexual Self.

Unlike other scientific books related to psychology and behavioral genetics, Mr. Wright's book does not bog down in "techno-jargon". He does a superb job at simplifying and codifying years of legitimate scienctific research regarding the genetic nudges of behavior. Having spent years myself as a psychology graduate student combing the same research, Wright is on target. The two most interesting aspects of his book is that he actually interviewed,face to face, prominent researchers in this field. Moreover, Wright adeptly outlined the history behind this turbulent subject. He put into words what I have observed for years; that some well-educated psychologists can be blinded to convincing scientific evidence. It is courageous of Mr. Wright to actually name the researchers which might have ulterior motives not to examine the evidence with an objective eye. In the end, "Born that Way", may not be the definitive book on behavioral genetics. However, it is an outstanding reference for people who wish to know more about where psychology has been and where it will soon be grounded. I certainly recommend this book to psychology students.

a good read, but can be confusing for kids. It takes a while to comprehend all of the Shakespearian langauge, but is very interesting. It is boring at parts.

The Winter's Tale contains some of the most technically difficult solutions to telling a story that have ever appeared in a play. If you think you know all about how a play must be constructed, read The Winter's Tale. It will greatly expand your mind.

The play opens near the end of a long visit by Polixenes, the king of Bohemia, to the court of his childhood friend, Leontes, the king of Sicily. Leontes wants his friend to stay one more day. His friend declines. Leontes prevails upon his wife, Hermione, to persuade Polixenes. Hermione does her husband's bidding, having been silent before then. Rather than be pleased that she has succeeded, Leontes goes into a jealous rage in which he doubts her faithfulness. As his jealousy grows, he takes actions to defend his misconceptions of his "abused" honor that in fact abuse all those who have loved him. Unable to control himself, Leontes continues to pursue his folly even when evidence grows that he is wrong. To his great regret, these impulsive acts cost him dearly.

Three particular aspects of the play deserve special mention. The first is the way that Shakespeare ties together actions set 16 years apart in time. Although that sounds like crossing the Grand Canyon in a motorcycle jump, Shakespeare pulls off the jump rather well so that it is not so big a leap. The second is that Shakespeare captures entirely different moods from hilarious good humor to deep depression and remorse closely adjacent to one another. As a result, the audience is able to experience many more emotions than normally are evoked in a single play. Third, the play's final scene is as remarkable a bit of writing as you can imagine. Read it, and marvel!

After you finish reading this play, think about where your own loss of temper has had bad consequences. How can you give yourself time to get under control before acting rashly? How can you learn to be more open to positive interpretations of events, rather than dark and disturbing ones?

Love first, second, and always!

The Winter's Tale is a lot of things: heart-breaking, exhilerating, funny, beautiful, romantic, profound, etc. Yeah, it's all here. This is one of the bard's best plays, and I can't believe they don't teach this in schools. Of course, the ones they teach are excellent, but I can see high school kids enjoying this one a lot more than some of those others (Othello, King Lear).

The story is, of course, brilliant. King Leontes goes into a jealous rage at the beginning against his wife Hermione. Leontes is very mistaken in his actions, and the result is tragic. Shakespeare picks the story back up sixteen years later with the children, and the story works to a really, really surprising end of bittersweet redemption.

This is one of Shakespeare's bests. The first half is a penetrating and devestating, but the second half shows a capacity for salvation from the depths of despair. Also, this being Shakespeare, the blank verse is gorgeous and the characters are well drawn, and the ending is a surprise unparalleled in the rest of his plays. The Winter's Tale is a truly profound and entertaining read.

the Oxford Shakespeare has been touted as 'a new conception' of Shakespeare, but is in fact merely an update of the cumbersome old Arden editions. Like these, 'King John' begins with a 100-page introduction, divided into 'Dates and Sources' (full of what even the editor admits is 'tedious' nit-picking of documentary evidence); 'The Text' (the usual patronising conjecture about misprints in the Folio edition and illiterate copyists); 'A Critical Introduction', giving a conventional, but illuminating guide to the drama, its status as a political play dealing with the thorny problem of royal succession, the contemporary legal ambiguities surrounding inheritance, the patterning of characters, the use of language (by characters as political manoeuvring, by Shakespeare to subvert them); and an account of 'King John' 'In the Theatre', its former popularity in the 18th and 19th century as a spectacular pageant, the play distorted for patriotic purposes, and its subsequent decline, presumably for the same reasons. The text itself is full of stumbling, often unhelpful endnotes - what students surely want are explanations of difficult words and figures, not a history of scholarly pedantry. The edition concludes with textual appendices.
The play itself, as with most of Shakespeare's histories, is verbose, static and often dull. Too many scenes feature characters standing in a rigid tableau debating, with infinite hair-cavilling, issues such as the legitimacy to rule, the conjunction between the monarch's person and the country he rules; the finer points of loyalty. Most of the action takes place off stage, and the two reasons we remember King John (Robin Hood and the Magna Carta) don't feature at all. This doesn't usually matter in Shakespeare, the movement and interest arising from the development of the figurative language; but too often in 'King John', this is more bound up with sterile ideas of politics and history, than actual human truths. Characterisation and motivation are minimal; the conflations of history results in a choppy narrative. There are some startling moments, such as the description of a potential blood wedding, or the account of England's populace 'strangely fantasied/Possessed with rumours, full of idle dreams/Not knowing what they fear, but full of fear'. The decline of the king himself, from self-confident warrior to hallucinating madman, anticipates 'King Lear', while the scene where John's henchman sets out to brand the eyes of the pubescent Pretender, is is full of awful tension.
P.S. Maybe I'm missing something, but could someone tell me why this page on 'King John' has three reviews of 'Timon of Athens'? Is somebody having a laugh?

Many people feel that this play of Shakespeare's is either unfinished or a poor effort. But I do not think this is accurate or fair. The reality is that many people can never find a middle ground. It is actually (in my opinion) quite common for people to only be able to see things from one extreme or the other. Despite Apemantus' cynical nature, there is no denying that whatever his faults are, HE DOES HAVE RIGHT ON HIS SIDE when he tells Timon: "The middle of humanity thou never knewest,/ but the extremity of both ends...." (4.3.342-343). Critics also tend to think Apemantus is unlikable, but are we missing a crucial point? I can not help but think Shakespeare is commenting on the fact that more people DON'T have a concept of reality. Apemantus refuses to join in the delight when Timon thinks highly of his false friends. Apemantus is aware of reality and no one wants to hear it. In my opinion Timon and Apemantus are VERY TRUE to life. In addition, the roll of Flavius is very touching. He can not dessert his master even when he knows (or thinks) Timon has nothing. Finally, I can not over estimate the mastery of Shakespeare when first Timon has money, he can not do enough for his so called friends and when he has nothing they dessert him. When Timon through fate gains a second fortune, he does not turn back into what he was, but rather he uses his 2nd fortune to destroy Athens. It is interesting that Shakespeare derived this play on the legend of 'Timon the Manhater,' and decides to take it a step further and show how he got there. And how much more realistic could Shakespeare have made this than by first showing Timon as a 'manlover?' Many people feel Timon should have somehow found the middle of humanity, but if he had, that would have defeated the whole purpose of this excellent play.

Among the least performed of all the Shakespeare plays, is probably the most disturbing. In the beginning, Timon is (not to put too fine a point on it) stupidly philanthropic; in the end he is equally misanthropic. When Timon is on top of the world, we have the cynical Apemantus to be our voice and let him know what a fool he is. In the last two acts, we simply wish (I do, at least) that our hero would stop complaining and let us "pass and stay not here," as he would have all men do in his epitaph.

But a recording is to be judged on its performances, not so much on its text. The Arkangel series, now in its last laps toward completion before (I am told) it is all redone on CDs, has every reason to be proud of its "Timon of Athens," thanks to its strong and intelligent readings. The opening scenes of artisans and poets building up the play's themes of wheel-of-fortune and gratitude/ingratitude are almost intelligible without a text open before you. Alan Howard, whom I saw in New York long ago as Henry V and as the main character in "Good," has that kind of friendly voice that is so well suited to the extravagant Timon in the open acts that we feel all the more for him when his false friends deny him in his need.

The snarling voice of Norman Rodway's Apemantus is a perfect counterpoint, and he casts out his invective in those early scenes with a hint of humor. However, when Timon becomes the misanthrope, his voice darkens and coarsens; and it is very hard to tell it from Apemantus' in their overly-long exchange of curses in 4:3. If the actor playing Alcibiades (Damian Lewis) sounds far too young for the role, that is a minor quibble--and perhaps the director wanted him to sound like a young Timon.

The incidental music sounds sufficiently Greek but too modern; still, Ingratitude knows no particular time period. A superior production of a much flawed play and a very welcome addition to any collection of recorded drama, especially since the old Decca set is long out of print and Harper audio does not yet have a "Timon" in their series.

On a superficial first reading, 'Titus Andronicus' is lesser Shakespeare - the language is generally simple and direct, with few convoluted similes and a lot of cliches. The plot, as with many contemporary plays, is so gruesome and bloody as to be comic - the hero, a Roman general, before the play has started has lost a wife and 21 sons; he kills another at their funeral, having dismembered and burnt the heroine's son as a 'sacrifice'; after her husband is murdered, his daughter is doubly raped and has her tongue and hands lopped off; Titus sacrifices his own hand to bail out two wrongfully accused sons - it is returned along with their heads. Et cetera. The play concludes with a grisly finale Peter Greenaway might have been proud of. The plot is basically a rehash of Kyd, Marlowe, Seneca and Ovid, although there are some striking stage effects.

Jonathan Bate in his exhaustive introduction almost convinces you of the play's greatness, as he discusses it theoretically, its sexual metaphors, obsessive misogyny, analysis of signs and reading etc. His introduction is exemplary and systematic - interpretation of content and staging; history of performance; origin and soures; textual history. Sometimes, as is often the case with Arden, the annotation is frustratingly pedantic, as you get caught in a web of previous editors' fetishistic analysing of punctuation and grammar. Mostly, though, it facilitates a smooth, enjoyable read.

For my fellow reviewers who choose to simply pass this play over because of the prevelant violence, I must point out the complex, witty character of Aaron the Moor. Shakespeare either intended for this play to be a parody of Marlowe/Kyd, or he wanted to experiment with a character, Aaron, to evoke every possible feeling from his audience. And, in my humble opinion, Shakespeare succeeded at this. Aaron is, at the same time, evil and cunny, witty and horrifying, and compassionate and stoic. His final lines, as he is buried up to his neck, left to starve, are some of the best confessions ever produced by the bard. It takes a truly cruel and uncaring individual to not feel for Aaron, who gives up his life for his child's, and who hopelessly and blindly loves a cruel witch of a woman. This play is worth reading, or seeing if you should be so lucky, simply to indulge yourself in the character of Aaron the Moor.

Now that the film "Titus" is about to open, I thought I had best hear a recorded version of the complete play to keep my mind clear during what is bound to be a perversion. Of course, many consider "Titus Andronicus" a perversion anyway; and to tell the truth, I do get a little queasy during the various mutilations that make the deaths at the end a relief rather than a shock. But accepting the play on its own terms, you will find the reissue on tape of the 1966 Caedmon recording of (CF 277) possibly the best directed of the entire classic series. Howard Sackler has a bunch of professionals on hand and he lets them (with one exception) tear up the scenery. Poor Judy Dench, who has so little to say as Lavinia before the plot makes her say no more, can only make pathetic noises for most of the play until her final death cry. The evil brothers, played here by John Dane and Christopher Guinee, are not only evil but sarcastically so--and this works on a recording as it might not on the stage. Perhaps Maxine Audley's Tamora is a bit too Wicked Witch of the West now and then; but her co-partner in evil, Aron the Moor, is brought to life by Anthony Quayle in a role he made famous on stage, going even further in the outright enjoyment of his ill-doing. Yes, this play can easily raise laughs and takes an Olivier to keep the audience in the tragic mood. (Reports are that he did it so well that some audience members became ill and had to leave.)

Which brings us to Michael Hordern's Titus. Hodern is a fine actor but not a great one. He suffers well but not grandly. I am surprised that his Big Moment--"I am the sea"--is lost among all the other images in that speech. But anyone can direct someone else's play. This recording, soon to be rivaled by one in the Arkangel series, is definitely worth having for Quayle's performance alone.

Native Son is an excellent book that is quite deep on many levels. Richard Wright does an incredibly nice job of developing his main character, Bigger Thomas.

Bigger is a twenty year-old poor black man hired by a wealthy white family, and then accidentally kills the prominent young daughter out of fear. In covering up her death, he allows his emotions to get the better of him, and he rapes and kills another girl.

The first two sections of the book are loaded with intrigue, suspense, and drama, as the reader is right there with Bigger as he tries to mislead the murder investigation, and then runs from the large angry masses once his cover-up is foiled. The third section allows you to get into Bigger's mind and feel his confused emotions. Here, the reader is treated to Wright's views on society mainly through the voice of Bigger's trial attorney.

The language in the book is easy-flowing, and not terribly descriptive, which was done intentionally, so the reader could read between the lines and make clear assumptions. All in all, the novel was quite entertaining and rather eye-opening.

It`s my personal opinion that Richard Wright`s Native Son is one of the best books ever written by an African-American writer. In his book he desribes the pains of ghetto life for the negroes in Chicago`s black belt, cira 1920. Never has an author ever caught the thoughts and feelings of a single person as Wright did with the main character Bigger. Bigger`s life is portrayed as bleak and dark but, things start to look up when he accepts a job as a driver for the millionaire Dalton`s. He is getting paid well with extra spending money and the opportunity to get an education. His first job is to take the Dalton`s daughter to a university function but, there is a change of plans, a change that turns out to be fatal. I don`t want to give the whole book away so I highly suggest read and find out what happens to Bigger. So if you enjoy reading classic American books you will enjoy Richard Wright`s Native Son.

The novel, Native Son, is a great story that illustrates racism in America. The main character, Bigger Thomas is continually treated unfairly because he is black. When he gets a job with a wealthy white family he accidently murders their daughter out of fear. He tries to cover up the murder and burns her body. He continues to try to escape because he is afraid that he is going to get arrested. He continues to run and gets into more trouble trying to escape. All of Bigger's acts of violence were done out of fear. Bigger is arrested and treated as a violent criminal. This novel illustrates that people can be mischaracterized by their actions when people don't actually know the person. In this novel, the reader gets to know Bigger's innocent, fearful character. This makes the reader feel sorry for Bigger and allows the reader to understand the effects of racism. The novel is filled with action and suspense that keeps the reader interested.